The Patricia W. Messler Collection consists of fifteen reels of amateur 16 mm. film. The collection was shot in black-and-white and color between 1939 and 1942 and documents the extended Messler and Whitney families at locations in Maine, New York, and Canada. Scenes of flowering gardens and winter snow are depicted at length over several reels, with many of the winter scenes based Ellsworth, Maine. Other Maine locations in Penobscot and Hancock counties are depicted, including Bartlett Island, Blue Hill, and the Penobscot Indian Island Reservation. Activities recorded include hunting, ice fishing for smelt, boating, and horseback riding. The Indian Island footage is of particular interest, documenting in color a 1940 Penobscot Indian procession.

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